Breakthrough Recycled Polyester Resin LOI Boosts ELITe
Breakthrough Recycled Polyester Resin LOI Boosts ELITe
Ester Loop Infinite Technologies Private Limited, or ELITe, has taken another step towards building a commercial customer base for its planned polyester recycling facility in Gujarat, India.
Loop Industries, ELITe’s joint-venture partner, has signed a non-binding Letter of Intent with an unnamed global sports and athletic brand. The prospective customer intends to purchase up to 15,000 metric tonnes of Loop PET Fiber Grade recycled polyester resin annually under a proposed multi-year arrangement.
The material would be supplied from ELITe’s future manufacturing plant in Gujarat, which is expected to begin operating in 2028.
Key facts
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Potential annual volume: up to 15,000 metric tonnes
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Agreement status: non-binding Letter of Intent
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Prospective customer: an unnamed global sports and athletic brand
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Supplier: Loop Industries through the ELITe facility
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Plant location: Nandida, Vagara, Bharuch, Gujarat
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Expected start of operations: 2028
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Planned feedstock: 100% polyester textile-waste streams
The distinction between an LOI and a completed supply agreement is important. The document demonstrates commercial interest, but it does not guarantee that the full volume will be purchased or that a definitive contract will be completed.
Second major sports-brand relationship
The latest LOI follows a previously announced multi-year offtake agreement between Loop Industries and Nike. Under that earlier agreement, Nike became the anchor customer for the Infinite Loop India facility.
Ester Industries says the two arrangements would cover a substantial portion of the plant’s planned annual production capacity before commercial operations begin. The new customer has not been identified publicly.
The emerging customer pipeline suggests that major apparel businesses are assessing chemical recycling as a potential source of polyester made from textile waste. It also gives ELITe prospective demand against which it can continue developing the facility and its associated supply chain.
How ELITe plans to recycle polyester textiles
ELITe is owned equally by Ester Industries and Loop Industries. Its Gujarat plant is designed to employ Loop’s depolymerisation technology, which breaks polyester waste down into the chemical building blocks dimethyl terephthalate, commonly called DMT, and monoethylene glycol, or MEG.
After purification, these monomers can be polymerised into PET resin intended to provide performance comparable with resin produced from conventional raw materials.
The proposed process differs from mechanical recycling, where existing plastic is cleaned, melted and reprocessed. Depolymerisation instead returns polyester to its constituent chemicals before producing new material.
According to Ester Industries, initial resin testing and feedstock-validation work has generated positive preliminary results. Full material qualification and integration with participating brands’ supply chains still need to be completed.
Gujarat project advances towards engineering phase
The facility is planned for Nandida in the Vagara area of Bharuch, Gujarat. Ester Industries expects land acquisition to be completed within the next two to three months, although that schedule remains forward-looking.
Tata Consulting Engineers has completed the project’s Front-End Engineering Design. ELITe has subsequently appointed Toyo Engineering India to undertake detailed engineering work.
If completed as planned, the plant will manufacture Loop and Twist branded PET resin for textile and packaging applications. Its intended feedstock is polyester waste rather than virgin fossil-derived material. Recycled polyester resin
Why the proposed volume matters
An annual volume of up to 15,000 metric tonnes would provide a meaningful prospective outlet for the Gujarat plant. It would also broaden the project’s customer base beyond its existing Nike agreement.
However, the commercial significance will depend on several remaining steps. These include converting the LOI into a binding agreement, completing customer qualification, securing suitable textile-waste supplies and delivering the facility on schedule.
The announcement therefore represents encouraging commercial progress rather than guaranteed future sales. Its clearest signal is that another international sports brand is considering chemically recycled polyester resin before ELITe’s planned 2028 start-up.
Frequently asked questions
What has ELITe announced?
Loop Industries has signed a non-binding LOI with an unnamed global sports brand concerning resin expected to be supplied from the ELITe facility.
How much resin could the customer purchase?
The proposed framework covers up to 15,000 metric tonnes of recycled polyester resin per year. Because the LOI is non-binding, this is a maximum intended volume rather than a guaranteed order.
Is the new customer Nike?
No. Nike is the previously announced anchor customer. Ester Industries describes the latest prospective buyer as another leading global sports and athletic brand but has not disclosed its identity.
When is the ELITe plant expected to open?
The joint venture currently expects the Gujarat facility to commence operations in 2028. Construction and start-up schedules may change as the project develops.
What material will the plant process?
The facility is intended to process polyester textile-waste streams and convert them into purified DMT and MEG before producing new PET resin.
Sources
USFibers Secures Private Equity Backing to Expand Recycled Polyester Fibre Production
